Dr. Chris Rupe

The following engaging, lay-friendly (non-technical, easy-to-understand) presentations are recommended for Sunday services or to Christian audiences more generally, regardless of the venue. They tend to run anywhere between 25-50 minutes long, depending on the age of the audience and topic. Q and A time following the presentations is welcomed and typically very fruitful, though it is entirely optional.

Why Genesis 1-11 Matters:
Moses, Jesus, and the NT writers clearly believed Genesis 1-11 describes actual, historical events including the six days of creation, a literal Adam and Eve, a literal Fall, a global flood, and the Tower of Babel dispersion. Sadly, biblical history recorded in Genesis has been questioned by much of the church and replaced by secular theories about origins that undermine Biblical authority. This has led to the rejection of Christian values and the collapse of a Biblical worldview in western society. In addition, countless souls have been led astray by these false views of origins devised by Darwin and his mentor, Charles Lyell.

Understanding Origins:
Is the creation/evolution controversy really an issue of science vs faith or is it a clash between two opposing histories? Learn how our view of history (whether biblical or Darwinian) colors our interpretation of scientific evidence.

Genetic Evidence for Adam and Eve:
Did all humans truly descend from a single pair—Adam and Eve? Discover the incredible evidence from modern genetics that is powerfully confirming the biblical account of a literal Adam and Eve, a genetic bottleneck coinciding with the Biblical Flood, and the global human dispersion out of Mid-East (Babel).

What About “Ape-Men”?:
Is it true that man evolved from so-called fossil hominins (“ape-men”) like Homo erectus, Neanderthals, “Lucy” etc.? Is it possible that the fossils are easily explained in light of the biblical view of human origins outlined in Genesis? Chris shares some of his findings from his book, Contested Bones, about why the fossil record powerfully confirms the biblical view of human history recorded in Genesis.

Do Animals Evolve?:
It is often said that small changes (microevolution) will inevitably add up to large scale changes (macroevolution), given enough time. This is one of the most fundamental claims of the theory of evolution. Learn why random mutations and natural selection cannot explain the origin and diversity of life. Animals truly do reproduce “according to their kinds.”

Global Evidence for the Flood:
Chris is a sedimentary geologist. This is one of his favorite topics to speak on because the evidence for a global flood is overwhelming! Sadly, the Bible warned that in the last days scoffers will “deliberately forget” that God used a global flood to destroy the pre-flood world. In this talk the evidence for a global flood is unveiled and the flawed assumptions of radioisotope dating methods are discussed in simple terms. It’s just as Jesus said, “the rocks will cry out”!

Dinosaurs on Day 6:
Most people have only been exposed to the evolutionary view of dinosaurs. We’ve been told that the “age of reptiles” represents a period of time long before the first humans evolved. But what is the biblical view of dinosaurs? Learn about the rapidly growing field of molecular paleontology, which paints a very different picture that happens to line up with the history recorded in Genesis. This is one of the most exciting talks Chris gives, to all ages.

Some audiences have an appetite for more technical—or at least semi-technical—presentations on challenging topics, such as radioisotope dating, the hominin fossil record (so-called “missing link” ape-men), and genetic entropy (why mutation/selection cannot lead to macroevolution over time). Chris wouldn’t recommend these topics for a Sunday morning sermon, however, they are perfect for college students, especially to a more science-minded audience of serious Christian apologists or secular atheists.